Ready to reconstitute foxtail millet pudding mix: Preparation and characterization for structural, morphological, physico-chemical, textural and sensory attributes

Pudding is a sweet dessert known for its soft texture and thick consistency. Foxtail millet can be used for preparation of pudding for everyday indulgence and nutrition. However, the preparation of pudding remains time consuming as the pre-cooking of millets is a lengthy process. Therefore, developing a convenient pudding mix using the millet will further present an opportunity for commercialization with an industry-friendly approach. Dry crystallization can be used for developing high-quality mixes with improved appearance, reconstitution, and sensory attributes while extending shelf life and enabling mechanization. Present work aimed to optimize the formulation of foxtail millet pudding mix. Millet, sugar and milk solids' levels varied from 20 to 25%, 65-72% and 8-12%, respectively. The descriptive sensory scores for browning intensity, sweet odour, mouthfeel, sweet flavour, nutty flavour and caramelized flavour ranged between 8.6-9.3, 8.3-9.2, 8.3-9.4, 8.4-9.4, 8.5-9.3 and 8.4-9.2, respectively for the 19 experimental samples. The hardness and fracturability varied from 109.17 N to 145.93 N and 28.02 N to 47.43 N, respectively. The L* and whiteness index values ranged from 87.69 to 94.08 and 81.48 to 86.72, respectively. The cubic models were significant (p p pudding mix, confirming the presence of all ingredients without any new functional bonds. The scanning electron micrographs revealed nucleation and growth rate disparities in the pudding mix.